'Living like a local' reshapes tourism

Industry participants say the focus of travel demand is increasingly shifting toward local immersion, with younger tourists showing greater interest in everyday urban life and neighborhood culture.

At a recent tourism industry gathering in Xiamen, Fujian province, practitioners from across hospitality, retail and cultural sectors discussed the evolving structure of domestic tourism.

Xiong Xiaojie, a long-time tourism marketing executive and former chief brand and marketing officer at Chimelong Group, says that cities are increasingly becoming tourism destinations in their own right rather than just gateways to scenic spots.

He notes that demand is shifting toward "living like a local", while urban renewal has expanded the range of spaces available for tourism, including former industrial sites, alleys and community markets. Social media platforms tend to amplify overall urban "vibes" rather than individual attractions.

He also points out that different cities are increasingly developing distinct cultural identities, citing examples such as Chengdu's leisure culture, Harbin's hospitality style and Jingdezhen's artistic atmosphere.

"One strong, shareable moment matters more than 10 perfect attractions," he says.

In the retail sector, companies are also adjusting to changing consumption patterns.

Kou Weixuan, global vice-president of lifestyle brand Miniso, says that consumer demand is increasingly driven by personal interest and emotional value, particularly among younger groups.

Miniso has shifted its focus toward intellectual property (IP) development and themed retail environments, combining product sales with experiential store design, he says.

At the company's flagship store on Shanghai's Nanjing Road, which covers about 1,500 square meters, daily visitor numbers exceed 10,000. According to company figures, cumulative revenue reached more than 250 million yuan ($37 million) within around one and a half years after opening.

Kou says that such spaces are designed not only for retail but also for traffic generation and cultural engagement.

Urban redevelopment projects are following a similar trajectory.

In Chongqing, finance and real estate professional Zhou Yaxin transformed a former printing factory into a cultural and creative complex in 2014, incorporating galleries, studios and public spaces while retaining much of the original industrial structure.

The site gained wider attention after being used as a filming location for the 2016 film I Belonged to You, attracting an increasing number of visitors.

In 2018, Zhou's team developed an open-air venue in Shancheng Lane by repurposing a sunken plaza behind a former church. The space, named the "Wilderness Theater", now hosts performances, community gatherings and cultural events.

Zhou says that many cities have underused industrial and historical spaces that can be reactivated through adaptive reuse rather than large-scale reconstruction.

"Every city has old factories, old neighborhoods, old buildings sitting empty. We need to see what's already there and see it differently," he says.

The cultural sector is also adapting to changing visitor expectations.

Qiu Tong, founder of Meet You Museum, observes that younger audiences increasingly prefer interactive and visually engaging exhibitions over traditional static displays.

The museum group has opened seven physical locations across China and staged exhibitions in more than 20 cities, attracting around 3 million visitors.

One exhibition features a projection-based interpretation of Yongle Palace, a Taoist temple from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), where visitors use flashlights to activate animated visual elements on wall drawings.

Another exhibition includes a dinosaur installation featuring a 10-meter-long rib cage that visitors can walk through.

Qiu says that the audience composition has shifted in recent years, with family and parent-child visitors now forming a larger share of total attendance compared with earlier years when young urban women made up the majority.

She also notes that placing exhibitions in shopping malls and city centers, rather than peripheral museum sites, has helped integrate cultural experiences into daily urban life.

In Tianjin, one of the group's projects was the first tenant in a converted parking garage, later followed by other cultural businesses, she says.

According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, China recorded 6.5 billion domestic tourist trips in 2025, an increase of 16.2 percent year-on-year.

Back at Tiaohai Living Youth Hostel, small gestures continue to define the guest experience. A visitor leaves a bottle of makeup remover on the "Give and Take" table for another guest. Another adjusts a dormitory sign to indicate a late return, and is thanked the next morning by a roommate.

"In the end, we're not selling a room. We're selling a reason to stay," Sui Yi says.

Contact the writer at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn